Hokuloa Road

A Novel

By: Elizabeth Hand

Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith

Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

A young man is drawn into the dark side of paradise in this haunting and "perfectly crafted" mystery (Grady Hendrix), about the eerie secrets of one Hawai’ian island—and the lengths some will go to keep them.

On a whim, Grady Kendall applies to work as a live-in caretaker for a luxury property in Hawaiʻi, as far from his small-town Maine life as he can imagine. Within days he's flying out to an estate on remote Hokuloa Road, where he quickly uncovers a dark side to the island’s idyllic reputation: it has long been a place where people vanish without a trace.

When a young woman from his flight becomes the next to disappear, Grady is determined—and soon desperate—to figure out what's happened to Jessie, and to all those staring out of the island’s “missing" posters. But working with Raina, Jessie’s fiercely protective best friend, to uncover the truth is anything but easy, and with an inexplicable and sinister presence stalking his every step, Grady can only hope he'll find the answer before it's too late.

Perfect for fans of Peter Heller and The White Lotus, and from award-winning writer Elizabeth Hand, a master of crime fiction known for her magnetic characters, seductive prose, and fearless excavations into the darkest corners of our world, comes a chilling and illuminating new novel about a place unlike any other—and the deadly cost of keeping it so.

"Set in a Hawaii so vividly imagined I'm still shaking sand out of my shoes."—Grady Hendrix

“Twisty and dark . . . easily one of the best thrillers I've read.” —Rachel Hawkins

“This is the perfect book for your summer beach bag—an evocative mystery set in a tropical island paradise . . . I was completely enthralled!” —Jason Rekulak

©2022 Elizabeth Hand (P)2022 Mulholland Books

Critic reviews

“Elizabeth Hand has been one of my favorite authors since Wylding Hall, so when I opened Hokuloa Road I knew I'd get her signature mix of deeply evocative prose, sinister surroundings, and fascinating characters. I was right, but even as a long time Hand Fan, I was completely blown away by this book. Hokuloa Road is twisty and dark, easily one of the best thrillers I've read, but it's so much more than that, too. It's thoughtful and pensive, smart and scary, and exhilarating as you realize that you're in the hands of a master storyteller. After reading this book, I promise, Elizabeth Hand is going to become one of your favorite authors, too.”—Rachel Hawkins, New York Times bestselling author of Reckless Girls and The Wife Upstairs

"Set in a Hawaii so vividly imagined I'm still shaking sand out of my shoes, Elizabeth Hand's perfectly crafted ghost story is exactly the comfort-destroying read you need on a long, lonely night."—Grady Hendrix, New York Times bestselling author of The Final Girl Support Group

“This is the perfect book for your summer beach bag—an evocative mystery set in a tropical island paradise. The locals warn that Hokuloa Road is dangerous, but I was completely enthralled by its scenery and secrets!”
—Jason Rekulak, author of Hidden Pictures

Beautiful novel!

I didn’t know what to expect, but I couldn’t stop listening. The story was compelling!

Folklore and Hawaiian Nature

The descriptions of nearly uninhabited places in Hawaii are beautiful and well written. This seems like a long tale with interesting characters.
However, I did fast forward through some parts.
Good narration.

Hawaiian wild life and mysticism..

A well-narrated story of life in Hawaii during the covid pandemic. It smoothly mixes tales of missing persons, Hawaiian wildlife, and spiritualism. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of Elizabeth Hand's books.

My Island getaway on a cold day

I really enjoyed this book not only for the story line but also for the vivid descriptions of the island, and the birds. It was also interesting to see how island life was effected by the pandemic. I love to read books that take place in locations I have visited as it makes it even more enjoyable. I really enjoyed the narrator and he was very good at Hawaiian pronunciation.

What happened to the ghost dogs?

Interesting, different mystery. Didn’t feel like the ending was satisfactory, like story just stopped. I still want to know what was in the woods!

Birds & Murder

What an interesting story, well written, fine narration
Hawaii is an underused location
well done !

Hawaiian Gothic

After a slow start, in which I almost abandoned the audio book, the narrative picked up, although I can't say I was ever enthralled by it.
The best part of the book to me is the portrayal of a dark Hawaiian island, full of homeless and poverty, where even the nature has an overpowering sense of decay and corruption.
The main character is, by choice, very bland and not all that likeable.

Fantastic narrator!

The story was a little fantastical for me, but I so appreciate the narrator! Unlike other narrators of audible books set in Hawaii, Kaleo knows how to pronounce Hawaiian words and uses the correct inflection when speaking. Mahalo!!!

“There’s something happening here…”

….what it is ain’t exactly clear”. The story is weird. There are some spooky parts but the plot drags. Very disappointing. But good narration.

Good Story, Terrible Dialog

The story was good - somewhat suspenseful, kept you guessing a little, and generally good. The downfall is the dialog between characters. Not at all natural and just simply terrible. The narration was excellent and really contributed heavily to me finishing the book. I got this book on sale - but would have returned it if I had spent a whole credit...